Horror trial in Lower Austria

Horror trial: This is how the tortured boy is doing today

The dog crate, in which the boy often had to cower for hours, in the courtroom in Krems (Lower Austria)

(Bild: zVg)

Day two of the horror trial against a 33-year-old Lower Austrian woman and her former best friend in Krems Regional Court. The mother is alleged to have severely tortured her twelve-year-old son from summer to November 2022 - under the guidance of the second defendant. The expert who examined Gerhard (name changed) in the intensive care unit - after the Donaustadt clinic had filed a complaint - spoke at the start of the trial on Tuesday. A social worker also had her say.

"A few hours later, he would most likely have been dead," says the medical expert. The former paediatrician was called to the Donaustadt clinic on 23 November 2022. A few hours earlier, Gerhard had been admitted in a life-threatening condition. The boy was in a coma and was admitted to the intensive care unit.

"He was severely emaciated, deeply unconscious and had to be given artificial respiration. His hands and feet were bluish in color," he reports. The child was severely hypothermic and had reached level three on the four-level scale, according to the expert. When he warmed up, "he could only be kept alive with massive heart-supporting medication."

The boy was in severe pain for months
Today, according to the expert, the boy is "physically healthy at the moment". He has regained his original weight - 29 kilograms more than on the day he was admitted to hospital. The psychological wounds remain, Gerhard is receiving close child psychiatric care. An expert already mentioned on Monday that she sees a "greatly increased probability" that the now 13-year-old "will remain deformed in his personality in the future". He is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

The accused women in Krems District Court.

(Bild: zVg, Krone KREATIV)

As the expert witness talks about the severe pain the young victim had to endure on a daily basis, the first members of the audience leave the courtroom. The descriptions are so unbearable.

Social worker saves his life
The first witness in the trial - a social worker - explains how Gerhard was saved at the last second. She looked after the first defendant as part of a parent counseling service before 2019. In September 2022, the woman contacted the witness again: "She had questions about a possible change of school for Gerhard. It was a confused phone call."

The call from the second defendant the following day was even stranger. The woman, who was unknown to her until then, told her that the first defendant's son was in a "precarious condition". The two women then arranged to meet and drove to the apartment.

(Bild: zVg, Krone KREATIV)

Mother "emotionless", second defendant "scary"

The situation on site was "simply surreal and bizarre", the witness reported: "I was very shocked." The child was lying on the floor next to the mattress in the room and was no longer responsive. According to the witness, it was definitely clear that the boy needed help. Nevertheless: "The mother stood there like a bystander and showed no emotion." - "All right, then I'll just take him to hospital tomorrow," the tormentor is said to have said. "Better call the ambulance now," the second defendant is said to have suggested. Which the mother then did.

If there's one person I can't figure out, it's the second defendant. She gave me the creeps.

Sozialarbeiterin

"She mechanically picked up her cell phone and gave the data completely emotionlessly. Like when you order a pizza," the social worker recalls. "The boy owes his life to you," said Ms. Rat to the witness, who also testified: "If there's one person I can't figure out, it's the second defendant. She was scary to me. Also because she always changed her voice so strangely." The woman spoke to the boy in completely inappropriate baby talk. In contrast, she gave his mother clear instructions.

Assessment by the youth welfare office raises questions
However, the questioning of a child and youth welfare worker raises questions. Following a risk report by a teacher on October 25 (she called the office a total of five times), a follow-up visit was not made until October 28, 2022. Although the boy had bandaged arms and only answered in monosyllables, there was no one-on-one conversation with the child.

Instead, the social workers assumed that the boy had a psychological impairment. It was not particularly cold in the apartment. However, the social worker did not take off his coat during the 40-minute visit. The mother had stated that Gerhard was sleeping in her bed. There was no children's room and the apartment smelled of urine. The child's thin build was "not a cause for concern". The refrigerator was not checked. During another home visit on November 18, the social worker also saw "no imminent danger". Because a listener repeatedly disturbed the hearing, shouting loudly at the witnesses, he was expelled from the house by Ms. Rat.

She mechanically reached for her cell phone and gave the data completely unemotionally. Like when you order a pizza

Sozialarbeiterin

Mystery about the motive
The two accused women follow the explanations in a rigid posture. Both have their legs crossed and their hands folded. The motive of the mother and her "whisperer" is a mystery. However, the impression is that Gerhard's mother loved the second defendant deeply. She did virtually everything she was asked to do - she even gave her the money from the terraced house she had sold.

The dog crate, in which the boy often had to cower for hours, in the courtroom in Krems (Lower Austria)

(Bild: zVg)

Mother-of-four claims to have been afraid of the first defendant
The second defendant, herself a mother of four, presents this differently during the trial. She herself was afraid that the first defendant would harm her or her family. The 40-year-old even brought a counselor with her to the trial, who was seated in row one right next to a prison guard: "I'm standing by her," said the counselor when asked by the judge. Who stood by the child in the summer and fall of 2022?